SECOND-PARENT ADOPTION

Second-parent adoption refers to the family law process by which a parent who is not genetically related to the child, but who has been in the child’s life acting as his/her/their additional parent, and/or coparenting with a parent who has been legally deemed to be the child’s parent, such as on a birth certificate, can legally be deemed that child or those children’s parent. The two most common instances of second-parent adoption is in cases of a step-parent, or in cases in LGBTQ families, where one parent is genetically related to the child, but not the other. The requirements of each of these are slightly different.

In step-parent-second-parent adoption, the adopting parent must be legally married or domestic partners with either the biological mother or father, and have been acting as a parent in the child’s life, where the other biological parent has been absent. This typically occurs in cases of abaondonment by or death of the non-present parent. However, it can also be in cases where the absent parent just plain doesn’t come around his/her/their children enough. That absent parent, if still living, must give up his/her/their rights, or have their rights terminated by the family law court. When that second parent adopts the child(ren), he/she/they take over all rights and duties of the child, and the rights and duties of the absent parent who is giving up his/her/their rights, or has them taken away by the family law court, seizes. Thus, that absent parent will no longer have visitation rights, nor have to pay child support.

In cases of LFBTQ families, the circumstances are usually quite different. Usually, the “step-parent” is not a step-parent at all, rather the intended parent who has been the intended parent all along. In fact, many “step-parents” in this situation are even offended or upset that they have to adopt their own child at all. For example, two women could decide to use a certain sperm donor to get pregnant. So, they have the donor sign a contract with them, giving the LGBTQ couple exclusive rights and duties to the child. That means the donor will not be able to visit the child, and will never have to pay child support, unless either of those things are agreed to in the contract. Once the child is born, the two LGBTQ intended parents are at the birth, and both their names go on the birth certificates. Some worry that if they were to move out of California or to a different country, that new place would not recognize them as the other parent listed on the birth certificate and so he/she/they legally adopts his/her/their own child, even though he/she/they are already that child’s parent and have been all along. In this case, the court does not require the absent parent (the sperm donor in the example) to waive his/her/their rights, because that has already happened, and the LGBTQ couple’s names appear on the birth certificate, not the sperm donor’s name.